Tattoo ARtist Spotlight: Bone Merchant
Q&A with Bone Merchant, tattoo artist:
WHAT’S YOUR NAME (AND STUDIO NAME/LOCATION ETC...), AND HOW LONG HAVE YOU BEEN TATTOOING?
Hello! My name is Loch and I go by Bone Merchant. I’m from Washington state and moved to Los Angeles two years ago. I’ve been tattooing for 8 months and I currently work out of my home studio in Burbank.
WHAT GOT YOU INTO TATTOOING?
About a year ago I had the unique opportunity to accompany my girlfriend for three days of tattooing while she got a full back piece from @lepapillion.tattoo, an extremely talented artist here in LA. I’ve always been intrigued by tattooing, and sitting next to a master artist for three days while watching him bring his vision to life was the final push I needed to take the first step and purchase my machine.
DID YOU START OFF AS AN APPRENTICE? IF SO, WHAT WAS THAT LIKE?
I’m entirely self taught so I can’t speak to the experience of having an apprenticeship. There have been plenty of days where I wished I had a mentor available to answer specific questions, but I also enjoy challenging myself and quickly found my way to the abundant resources for beginning tattoo artists and started my education. I didn’t have any previous artistic experience or training so I had to learn the fundamentals of art in parallel with learning how to tattoo. Luckily you can learn pretty much anything on YouTube, and I put my head down and locked in.
WHEN YOU WERE STARTING OUT, WERE YOU INSPIRED BY OTHER ARTISTS?
Daniel (lepapillion.tattoo) was a huge inspiration during this period. Some of my bucket list artists are @gara_tattooer, @bemben_tattoo, @sstatts, @uncogrim. Right now I’m just barely starting to figure out what I want my own personal style to be and what emotion and energy I’d like my art to communicate. This is something that is very important to me, and I have a pretty solid idea of what direction I want to take my art. That being said, I’m very much still learning and right now my main focus is practicing day in and day out to get my skill as a tattooer to the level it needs to be to pull off the visions I have in mind. Styles that I’m most excited about are illustrative gothic realism, dark ornamental, blackwork, large scale decorative pieces that highlight body shape and flow. Also anything involving skulls.
DID YOU WORK IN OTHER MEDIUMS FIRST OR GO STRAIGHT TO TATTOOS?
I went straight to tattoos! I’ve started exploring drawing and have designed a few of my tattoos starting with paper and pencil. It’s definitely something I want to lean into more, but right now my main focus is mastering the fundamentals of tattooing. Practicing on fake skin or tattooing clients is how I spend the majority of my time.
HOW DO YOU HANDLE THE PRESSURE OF KNOWING THAT WHEN TATTOOING, IT’S PERMANENT…THERE’S NO “UNDO” BUTTON.
The pressure and responsibility I feel when working on someone’s skin is equal parts daunting and exciting. As I become more and more confident in my ability I don’t feel the nervousness I did when just starting out. So much of tattooing is mental, just knowing that I will execute a perfect tattoo and can rely on my training and muscle memory when I get into that flow state.
A good friend told me that pressure is a privilege, and I try to see it through that lens. When someone trusts me to mark their body permanently it’s my responsibility to safely make a high quality tattoo that they can wear and enjoy for the rest of their life. I can’t think of a bigger privilege than that, and I’m deeply grateful for the trust I’m given each time I work on a client.
ASIDE FROM THE ACTUAL DRAWING, WHAT’S A SKILL A TATTOO ARTIST NEEDS THAT PEOPLE DON'T REALIZE? WHAT CHALLENGES DO TATTOO ARTISTS FACE?
The marketing side of things is important to build a successful practice, this is something I need to focus on more as I seek to grow my practice. Social media is a great tool to share work, but it also allows me to communicate my personality and give potential clients an idea of the energy and vibe I bring to my work. When you’re going to spend long hours intimately working together this becomes relevant. I’m extremely positive and enthusiastic and want my clients to feel that passion and engagement.
DO YOU HAVE A FAVORITE TATTOO THAT YOU’VE DONE?
Each piece is special to me, but I really love the pair of circling tigers I did on the back of my clients thighs.
